Three steps for healthcare innovators to succeed in the NHS market

However, while these activities are crucial for entering the NHS market, they are only the beginning of what is needed to succeed in it.

Focusing solely on regulatory and reimbursement requirements does not guarantee product adoption, sustained use, or commercial success. To truly succeed in the NHS market, healthcare innovators must navigate and effectively respond to three key challenges.

1. Identify the market opportunity

Firstly, understanding the size and dynamics of the target market is essential. Is your product’s target population or clinical care segment clearly defined? To meet this challenge, you will need to understand factors including your target population, how it will change over time, consumer and patient behaviours, policy changes, and technology advancements. Equally important is understanding your target customers’ needs, ability, willingness to buy and use the product, and the value they perceive in it.

For example, a developer of a new wearable device for treating symptoms of a neurodegenerative disease might identify a significant market opportunity among the 145,000 people living with Parkinson’s in the UK. The company would need to understand the specific needs and behaviours of this group and the sub-groups within it, such as what proportion are comfortable using wearable devices and want to self-manage their condition. They’d also need to understand whether individuals, and/or their clinicians, would want to adopt such an innovative treatment alternative – and if so, what value they would put on it. This helps identify what proportion of the total market might be open to using the product (and therefore support or push the NHS to purchase it), and what future changes might make it more attractive to a broader audience.

2. Understand how a product fits into current NHS care pathways

No healthcare product, whether digital or physical, is used in isolation. Both clinicians and patients must understand how the product integrates into the broader care pathway. This understanding is crucial for developers to identify their true competitors. Competition is not just similar physical or digital products but any solution meeting the same patient needs within the same care pathway, such as medication or behavioural approaches as well as other digital interventions.

For example, a medical device targeting the orthopaedics market must understand how its solution fits into existing NHS orthopaedic care pathways. This includes whether it replaces physical therapy or is used in conjunction with it, how it fits within the overall treatment plan, and its prescription and reimbursement routes.

Additionally, a pilot is beneficial in raising your product’s profile among health system leaders, clinicians, and decision-makers following regulatory approval. Pilots help to address practical and operational requirements for product rollout, ensuring it can navigate the specific requirements of being embedded into care pathways. There are two types of pilots which organisations can run to optimise product launch:

• Operational pilot: Tests the product’s integration and deployment in real NHS clinical pathways and local health systems. Insights gained will optimise distribution, integration, support, and internal processes.
• Evidence generation pilot: Generates evidence for the product in specific clinical contexts and further optimises operations.

3. Influence the ‘buyer’

Who will be most influential in informing an NHS organisation’s decision to buy your product? Most likely, it will be a combination of clinicians, patients and managerial leaders – so you will need to positively influence all of them.

If your product is for clinicians’ use, consider how it could be positioned to improve their working lives, as well as the outcomes their patients can expect. Clinical time is an increasingly scarce resource, so saving it is a major selling point of any product. If the product is for use by patients (and even to be sold directly to them as well as used by the NHS), how will you ensure it has the credibility that can only come with clinical backing? Finally, how will you demonstrate ongoing value for money compared to your competitors and especially compared to the treatments / approaches which are most widely used at present.

Taking an iterative approach to these three questions, you can ensure your product appeals to the right people in the most promising market areas. Practical decisions like pricing, go-to-market strategy, and future product focus will become clearer. Understanding NHS buyers, their needs, and the value they see in the product will help you price it right. Knowing your customers thoroughly will ensure product development, giving you greater access to key market segments and setting you apart from competitors.

In the crowded NHS innovation market, this comprehensive approach isn't just beneficial—it's essential for success and can be the difference between your product thriving or being left on the shelf.